Domestic Counterattack

Domestic Counterattack
Yasamin Zamanieh

April 22 - 26, 2024
Reception: Thursday, April 25, 4 -6 PM

Herter Art Gallery is pleased to present Domestic Counterattack, a thesis exhibition by Yasamin Zamanieh, in the Department of Art at the University of Massachusetts.

Domestic Counterattack addresses the challenges and instabilities that rural Iranian women face when trying to earn a living. Since the recent uprisings in Iran, the internet is intermittently and unpredictably shut down, making it impossible for women who cannot find traditional work, to sell, for example, their textiles online.  The installation in the East Gallery contains small and often hidden work environments inside domestic objects and spaces that are normally occupied by women. These represent spaces of resistance to the oppressive, patriarchal system Iranian women face on a daily basis. 

In the West Gallery viewers encounter citizen uncertainty and resiliency through animations and sculptures. Bodies fall and pick themselves up continuously, trying to live their lives under authoritarian rule. The shadows created by viewers' bodies as they wander through the space act to block the projections, creating an embodied experience of the day-to-day challenges citizens face.

The animation on the iPad represents the frequency of internet disruptions in Iran, (November 2021-November 2023). I used a processing programming language to integrate the data I collected combined with traditional Baluch textile motifs. Each frame corresponds to a single day, the presence of red indicating internet disruption.

Bio:
My artistic endeavors are interdisciplinary, utilizing various media and technology to explore human experience and the themes of gender and class. Socio-political issues are at the core of my investigation. As an Iranian woman who experienced political events, they have significantly shaped my identity and ideology. Therefore, I see my works as revisiting these conflictual moments and developing new interactive/ evidentiary techniques for systematic political violence.

This event was made possible with generous support from the UMass Fine Arts Council.

 

Gallery Hours:
Mon – Fri: 11 AM – 4 PM
Sat: 1 PM – 4 PM
(Closed on Sundays and state holidays)